THE NATURE OF THE NEW HEART Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Cor.5:17. The word ‘Therefore’ is a conclusion of Paul’s arguement about certain unmistakable characters and behaviours of someone who has been saved. He noted in verses one to four that the recreated human spirit of christians ‘groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with…...house which is from heaven…’. One of the characteristics of a saved man is his desire to shed his mortal body so as to put on immortality; he sees this world as vile and his mortal body as a burden to be earnestly shed off. An unsaved man does not desire death because he does not know what lies after death and he is afraid of the unknown! This is a litmus test that helps to know if one is saved or not! Paul, in writing this gives us a clue as to know those who are truly saved. A saved man looks forward to being ‘clothed upon with…house which is from heaven’. He knows there is a glorious body awaiting him. He wants it earnestly. A saved man knows deep within his human spirit that there is a house of God to put on, he knows about immortal body created by God and he looks forward to it earnestly. This is a litmus test. Look at verse 4: For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. 2 Cor. 5:4. Paul says ‘…we (those who are saved in Christ)…. in this tabernacle (mortal body) DO GROAN…’ He is saying that there is something unique about a true christian,…..a truly saved man on earth DO GROAN because of the mortal body he lives in. There is something about the new heart that shows that he is not too comfortable in his mortal body. The new man or recreated human spirit wants ease of himself. This new man groans because of the mortal body he has on! The word ‘groan’ also means ‘to sigh’. There is a sigh of the new heart; a sigh of the new man. A saved man is so concerned about his human spirit. He desires the comfort of his new man. An unsaved man spends time with his mortal body! He gives UNDUE attention to making or creating comfort for his body rather than his spirt. This makes the saved different from the unsaved! This is a litmus test our salvation. For an unsaved man, his mortal body groans, but for the saved in christ, there inward man groans! He goes on to say that a saved man is ‘burdened’. The mortal body he carries around preaching and living for christ is a burden. Why? The reason he is burdened is because his recreated human spirit KNOWS that there is an immortal body, eternal which has been created by God which is exceedingly better than the present human body he carries presently. A saved man earnestly desires that he ‘would be…..clothed upon, (so) that mortality might be swallowed up of life’. vs 4. A saved man wants to get rid of anything subject to death, decay and any form of corruption. A saved man knows things that are corruptible and, if possible, would have nothing to do with them. He does not give undue attention to things corruptible; he wants to have something not subject to time…..eternal and created by God. He desires that ‘mortality might be swallowed up of life’. The burden of his human body is so much that he wants to be unclothed. if possible, in this life! He wants to have on the house created by God now. Are you comfortable in this body? Do you really desire that immortal body created by God? This is another litmus test! Paul draws up the lifestyle of a recreated human spirit when he says ‘for we (christians) walk by faith, NOT by sight:’. A God-recreated human spirit desires more to walk by faith rather than by sight! A truly saved man will hate human efforts or works. A truly saved man hates trying to earn from God! He does not walk by sight, he walks by faith. He does no bargain with God on the bases of his right-living. These are litmus tests that helps one to know if one is saved or not! With boldness, Paul says this: We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord’ 2 Cor.5:8. He says ‘we (ekklessia) are CONFIDENT..’ There is an unwavering confidence a saved man has because he knows that he is saved! Paul goes on to say ‘…..we are…..willing rather to be absent from the body (human body), and to be present with the Lord’. If you do not have confidence towards going to be with the Lord….check your salvation! It is a litmus test! After, giving unique nature of the new creature in relation to himself and eternity, he goes on to describe the nature of the new man in relation to the world or people around. Let’s look at verse 11…. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences. 2 Cor. 5:11’ He says ‘Knowing….. the terror of the Lord…’. The new man knows something about the terror of the Lord…..NOT in relation to himself….but in relation to those who are not saved. Paul says ‘Knowing…..the terror of the Lord, WE (the saved) persuade MEN…’. Can you see that? The ‘terror of the Lord’ is in relation to ’men’, that is, those who are not saved! John puts it this way: He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life:and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. Jn.3:36 The ‘wrath of God’ abideth on him who does not have everlasting life! Those who have everlasting life do not have the wrath of God upon them. Here is a revelation of ‘the terror of the Lord’ in relation to those who do not have everlasting life. The ‘wrath of God’ lives on them and they have ALREADY BEEN CONDEMNED! John, in his own words, says ‘….He that believeth on him is not condemned:but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. Jn.3:18’. Did you see that? He says ‘He that believeth NOT is CONDEMNED ALREADY…’. That condemnation has been settled’ This is a revelation of ‘the terror of the Lord’. Do you see the terror of the Lord towards men this way? This is another litmus test to know if you have the new man. Paul says ‘Knowing….the terror of the Lord, we (christians) persuade men’. The new man desires the ministry of reconciliation! Blessed are the peacemaker, for they shall be called children of God.’ says Jesus. The truly saved, will preach the truth till he drops! He knows how angry God is towards those not saved, therefore, he persuades men…he evangelises. He is not afraid to lose friends and fellow workers. Paul puts it this way: At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear:and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. 2Tim.4:16-17’ This resilience of a saved man is remarkable….he is unstoppable. As a result, they experience a ‘constraint’ of the love of God. It makes them to preach and live a life in accordance with the vocation wherewith they have been called. These are the reasons why the word ‘therefore’ came in when he said ‘Therefore if any man be in Christ…..’ The word ‘new’ in 2 Cor.5:17 means ‘unprecedented’, ‘novel’, ‘uncommon’ and ‘unheard of’. Paul caught the unusual behaviour of the new man in light of death, judgement seat of christ, the burden of the human body he lives in, and the desire to have on the heavenly body. This is uncharacteristic of the unsaved man! He looked and examined the life of those in Christ and saw some unusual boldness! Unusual boldness towards life and its challenges, unusual boldness to speak out to desire the heavenly body, the unwavering confidence to be with the Lord was in display! The dread of God was gone…..Paul saw that they were never dreaded God anymore! In fact, they were more than eager to face God! These are the things an unsaved man does not want to think about. An unsaved man would rather wish that God does not exist because the mere mention of God is a torment to him. With these observations, Paul says Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Cor.5:17’ In other words, Paul is saying that the personality of a saved man or recreated human spirit is unusual and directly opposite to that of an unsaved man. Paul goes on to tell us why the new man has this uniqueness when he said ‘….because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead… vs 14’ The uniqueness of this new man is attributed to something that happened to us in christ on the cross. He says that ALL ‘were dead’ because of the death of Christ. We were in Christ when he said ‘It is finished’ and gave up his ghost. The Old nature or depravity died with christ. Now that we live because we have the new man, we do not live to ourself anymore because our views has changed by virtue of the new man in us. All things have been changed. The Old man is destroyed and we have the new man. In addition, Jesus would walked on earth in human body has also changed because he has put on a glorious body. These things are new. Paul says ‘…behold, ALL THINGS are become new’. ‘ALL THINGS’ means his view of things pertaining to life and life after. The views, understanding and boldness towards life and life after are ‘new’, that is, unprecedented! The way a saved man sees his own mortal body is opposite to that of an unsaved man……it is novel! The view of a saved man in regards to being with the Lord is bold and unheard of. An unsaved man does not want to here the name ‘Jesus’, he dreads it. A new heart knows something about the heavenly body, he knows there is another body awaiting him and he earnestly desires to put it on……this earnest desire and knowledge is uncommon in contrast to that of a man who is depraved. Our views pertaining to the messiah has also changed. He has a glorious body and he is the saviour. To a saved man, ALL these THINGS ARE NEW! WATCH OUT FOR PART TWO……...
Posted on: Tue, 27 Jan 2015 09:59:49 +0000
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